During his Congressional testimony last September, then-Commissioner O’Malley testified that “as processing backlogs grew, the Office of the Chief Actuary estimates that approximately 30,000 people died in 2023 while waiting for their disability decisions, while their application for Social Security or SSI disability benefits, or both, was pending a decision at the initial, reconsideration, or hearing levels.”

This month, SSA released additional data in support of that 30,000 number, and it warrants a closer look: